It's been 6 weeks since my daughter Delainey (9) began with HSP vasculitis and nephritis. Things have been up and down. Following is a recap of our progress.
Please keep in mind, I do split water dosing so even though remedies were changed frequently, they were only changed after they either did not work, or a dissimilar aggravation developed. And with split dosing, one dose is split up so the water dose is a fraction of what a single dry dose would be, therefore it is usually exhausted much faster.
Note: I know my inexperience certainly has tripped us up in places. However, I consulted with several different homeopaths and received a different answer from each. I could do nothing more than follow the symptoms and prescribe accordingly. While the experience has been frustrating, exhausting, and has completely rocked my world, I have no regrets in how we have treated her.
Shortly after my last message 4 weeks ago, Delainey was hospitalized with internal bleeding from the HSP. Stools were completely blood - just dark liquid blood. She had severe abdominal pain and her left parotid gland was significantly swollen. Arsenicum had helped her paralysis, bleeding, and other symptoms significantly prior to being hospitalized. However, she hadn't eaten in 10 days and was severely dehydrated and Ars was no longer acting.
While in the hospital, her abdominal pain became so severe the doctors wanted to do more invasive testing and a CT scan of the parotid gland. All night I thought about what to give her. I thought about what started all of this and couldn't help but focus on the 5 kittens we had taken in for 3 weeks prior. I thought it was a grief she was experiencing. Delainey talked a great deal about how she missed the kittens. That morning in the hospital, I was reading Sankaran's System of Homeopathy and read a passage about Cyclamen. I remembered from Didier Grandgeorge that Cyclamen above all, had a strong love for cats. My husband did quite well on Cyclamen for 1.5 years - he had a baby brother that died just after childbirth that the family was not allowed to talk about. His mother had 12 cats when I met him. Every time we became pregnant he wanted to adopt a kitten.
In any event, I read Cyclamen was like a female Aurum with a feeling of neglecting her duty. It also falls between Pulsatilla and Silicea. You may recall I was weighing these two remedies heavily at the beginning. I asked Delainey what bothered her most about the kittens and she responded it made her so sad because she felt no one could take care of them like she did. She said *she* had found them and they were her responsibility (neglected her duty).
I did a quick rep on my laptop and was pleased to see many rubrics of Cyclamen fit her case: it covered each small general symptom however did not have purpura or bloody stool specifically. *All* the generalities fit and the mental/emotional definitely fit. Desperate, I gave her 1 tsp. from a water bottle of Cyclamen, 30c. The intestinal bleeding stopped immediately. She did not have another bloody stool from that point on. The swelling in her parotid gland went down completely. Her abdominal pain immediately went away. She had an appetite and ate for the first time in 10 days. The doctors kept coming in and asking what they had given her!
Despite her improvements, the doctors were still trying to convince us to give her steroids. Research shows it may or may not be effective. Given I still have significant issues with my thyroid and adrenal glands after just 2 rounds of Prednisone over 15 years ago, I did not feel convinced to do the steroids. The Merck manual and several studies show Prednisone to be ineffective in HSP. I was backed into a corner by 4 doctors and finally discharged my daughter from the hospital.
At home, she did OK, but the Cyclamen brought no further improvements. She developed repetitive sneezing and a runny nose which I determined was a dissimilar aggravation. While her intestinal bleeding and abdominal pain were gone, she still had intermittent pain and paralysis in extremities, alternating sides, and the purpura and bruising was as bad as ever. China Sulph seemed indicated but had no effect. Strangely enough, her symptoms shifted a bit and came up as Lac Caninum on reperatorization. And Lac-C seems to fit her very well overall.
- Craving milk which is highly unusual for her as she was allergic to milk until age 4 and never drinks it as a beverage.
- Back pain, dorsal region near the scapulae.
- Abdominal pain had fit.
- Coldness of extremities at night.
- Formication (numb tingly feeling) of her right foot from the ankle.
- Pain in the hollow of the right knee.
- Alternating sides or constantly changing symptoms.
- Started right moved left.
- Paralysis seemed to settle in the lower right leg and upper left arm.
- Severe swelling in her ankles.
- Face, swelling parotid gland, started on left.
- Albuminuria.
- Great weakness and prostration.
- Cannot bear slightest touch.
- Out of nowhere she said she was afraid of spiders crawling under her covers (delusions, spiders)
- White aphthae on her lower lip (alt. left then right)
- Dreams: strange monsters walking around, and of urinating.
- Black, swollen eye (right) from sleeping on her face.
- One eye protruding (chronic, periodic symptom for her - exophthalmus)
I remember reading in Farokh Master's Lac book that Lac Caninum and Lac Felinum were very similar. It was just too far out there for me to think Lac Felinum was the remedy she needed given all of this started after finding a momma cat and 5 nursing kittens. And, I had no real rubrics to go by to indicate Lac-F. Since nothing else was helping, and the rubrics seemed to fit, I gave her 1/2 tsp with 1 dilution glass of Lac Caninum, 30c in water. The next morning, her swelling was significantly reduced, her back pain was gone, her left shoulder pain disappeared, and she said she felt "happy" for the first time since this started. She ate *4* pancakes! She said the remedy helped a lot. She became very creative and made this little house out of paper for her stuffed animals. She worked on it all day. This is the most she had done in 3 weeks.
However, later that day, she developed blood and protein in her urine again. A repeat of Lac-C did not bring any further improvements. Her ankle became swollen again and her right foot became painful. Sulphuric Acid seemed to fit well but after 3 days of mediocre results, her symptoms then shifted again. She began begging for backrubs. (In hindsight, I think she was pushing out symptoms to steer me to the right remedy.)
After much consideration and consultation with another homeopath, it was determined she needed a syphilitic remedy which covered the totality of the case. I carefully considered Lachesis but had tried it earlier on with no results and the generalities didn't fit. Her right side was mostly effected. She was worse in the evenings (as the day wore on) and significantly improved in the mornings (her best time). And emotionally, I didn't see it covering the case. I retook the case. She more clearly pointed to Phosphorous.
Nose bleed with purpura (phos, 3; lach, 2)
Back pain, boring, dorsal region, spine (phos 1 - no lach)
Back pain, burning, dorsal region, scapulae, between, rubbing amel (only one remedy - Phos)
Back pain, rubbing amel. (She *begged* us to rub her back) (phos, 3; lach, 1)
Extremities, swelling, foot, evening agg (phos, 2 - no Lach)
Extremities, numbness, foot (Phos, 3; Lach, 1)
Extremities, discoloration, lower limbs, purpura haemorrhagica (Phos, 2; Lach 2) (the purpura on her legs turned brownish and all grouped together)
Eye, protrusion, exophthalmus (this is a chronic symptom for her which pops up intermittently) (Phos, 2, no Lach)
Urine, albuminous (Phos 2, Lach 2)
So we began Phosphorous, 30c in water. She improved very well for 6 days at which point all improvement stopped. An increase to 200c in water brought no further change. That night she said she dreamt she had to get a dog to take care of for a school project and she saw the kittens at the shelter. She cried.
Frustrating! So I gave nothing for 2 days hoping for something to stand out. The next morning she woke up and said she dreamt about the kittens again. She began to cry and said how much she missed taking care of them. Her hands were sore and stiff and her right foot was still extremely sensitive. However, what stood out to me was her new desire to create things with paper (Lac-felinum). We were laying on the bed and she stretched out her right leg and upon finishing the stretch she shook her leg - and darn if it didn't look exactly like when a cat gets up and stretches her leg out. I know it sounds completely out there and ridiculous to prescribe based on this but given her previous response to the Lac-C, her playing with the paper, and her illness began after giving up 5 nursing kittens (her babies she called them), I gave her a dose of Lac Felinum, 1 tsp, 1 dilution glass, 30c in water.
She immediately brightened. She said she felt incredibly happy. All of her symptoms were ameliorated. She said the remedy helped her the most of any remedy we had done in the previous month! She did great for 2 days. Unfortunately, the blood and protein spiked in her urine. A repeat of Lac Felinum brought no change. She does weekly blood and urine testing to monitor kidney function. Her doctor called and said she would need to see the nephrologist in the next week if her symptoms did not improve. She was anemic from the blood loss. Her face looked puffy. So... after retaking the case yet again, we started Nat Mur, 200c in water, 1 tsp. She improved over the next 4 days (daily doses). Her face was no longer swollen, her color returned, the bulging in her eye went away.
Then her leg again became very stiff and swollen. She said the pain was stinging. She was worse for taking a hot shower. The blood and albumin in the urine went up to 4+. I read in the MM, that Apis is often used for acute albuminuria following an acute illness, inflammation of the kidneys, other symptoms - extreme sensitive to touch, great prostration, constriction and stiffness in calf and behind knee. I switched to Apis, 200c, 1 tsp, 1 dilution glass. We saw improvement in external symptoms for 3 days. Hematuria and albuminuria did not improve at all though. Repeat of remedy has made no change.
So yesterday the doctor called and we are facing a possible kidney biopsy next week if the blood and protein does not subside. I feel like I am running against the clock. Yesterday she appeared pale to me. Her face was puffy again. She complained of pain/constriction in the cervical region and a headache in her forehead above her right eye and temple. We've all been getting over a nasty/cold flu thing. I thought perhaps she was coming down with it which would be devastating as it would most likely reactivate the purpura.
She has come so far. The purpura, swelling, paralysis, and pain are all improved. The anemia from hemorrhage, albuminuria, hematuria, increased specific gravity, and constriction in the hollow of her right knee, as well as formication(numbness) in outer right foot are her last remaining symptoms. (She also has a chronic disposition to hawk tonsil stones from her throat which has been frequent these past few weeks.)
Ferrum Metallicum dawned on me last night after looking at remaining symptoms. So she has had Ferrum Metallicum, 30c, 1 tsp, 1 dilution glass yesterday and today (4 succussions). Today she was happy and bubbly. Symptoms seem the same. That's where we are.
I struggle with whether to return to the pediatric nephrologist. Our family has made the decision to do homeopathic medicine - not allopathic medicine. But when dealing with my daughter's kidneys, how do I stay strong? And if we continue to monitor via blood tests and then deny the allopathic meds, we may risk investigation, I'm sure. It's frustrating for me to not see complete improvement although I know she has made such significant improvements along the way. Homeopathy has been a Godsend for sure. We are just taking it day by day.
I welcome comments or suggestions. If you've made it this far - thank you for reading!
Truly,
Erica